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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/26481532">Better is Better</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/TakingOverMidnight3482/pseuds/TakingOverMidnight3482'>TakingOverMidnight3482</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Series:</b></td><td>Julie and the Phantoms One-Shots: Ghostly Mishaps [3]</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Julie and The Phantoms (TV)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>All of Jeremy Shadas characters just radiate bi energy I cant, Bisexual Julie Molina, Coming Out, Fluff, Friendship, Gen, It Gets Better, Mentions of homophobia, Multi, bisexual reggie, but nothing explicit, everyone is bi except Alex bc hes gay, reassurance</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-09-15</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-09-15</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-06 10:27:04</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>General Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>2,447</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/26481532</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/TakingOverMidnight3482/pseuds/TakingOverMidnight3482</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
      <p>I wrote this last night but wanted to wait until I posted the one with Ray to do this one, since the Ray one falls in line with my first in this series. </p><p>I might do one later with Reggie really coming to terms with himself, but I wanted this one to be mostly about Alex, since he had to live through the 90s while being gay. (Also I genuinely can't remember if Alex ACTUALLY came out to Julie so thats in here, if he did oh my god what episode because I rewatched them all specifically looking for that scene)</p><p>Also I have a headcanon that when the guys are bored, they sit with Julie in her classes. At first just to have something to do, but then they realize that they actually missed school a little bit. But they all dislike jocks bc classic 90s rivalries lol</p>
    </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Julie Molina &amp; Alex</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Series:</b></td><td>Julie and the Phantoms One-Shots: Ghostly Mishaps [3]</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Series URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/series/1925116</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>30</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>1078</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>Better is Better</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>I wrote this last night but wanted to wait until I posted the one with Ray to do this one, since the Ray one falls in line with my first in this series. </p><p>I might do one later with Reggie really coming to terms with himself, but I wanted this one to be mostly about Alex, since he had to live through the 90s while being gay. (Also I genuinely can't remember if Alex ACTUALLY came out to Julie so thats in here, if he did oh my god what episode because I rewatched them all specifically looking for that scene)</p><p>Also I have a headcanon that when the guys are bored, they sit with Julie in her classes. At first just to have something to do, but then they realize that they actually missed school a little bit. But they all dislike jocks bc classic 90s rivalries lol</p>
    </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>The band room was empty when Alex popped his head into it to look around. He and the other guys had tagged along with Julie to school that day – for him, it was about maybe seeing if he could learn something, for the other two, it was about how much had physically changed and messing around with the jocks. He’d broken off from the group in mild exasperation, letting Julie know quietly that he was going to explore.</p><p>She’d nodded at him and he’d been wandering the school for the last ten minutes, looking at all the posters on the walls and the decorations on people’s lockers. He’d stuck his head into a few classes – History had always been his favorite – but he had clearly missed a lot the last 25 years, and it had given him a headache. He didn’t even know ghosts could get headaches.</p><p>So he’d searched for the band room, hoping that maybe he could get his hands on an instrument to take his annoyance out on. He stepped past the piano, letting his fingers drift over the keys. Not hard enough to play, but enough to almost feel them.</p><p>When he rounded the piano, he stumbled to a halt.</p><p>On the floor in front of him were two girls, shoulder to shoulder, taking a selfie. Their fingers were intertwined, and the darker of the two was pressing a kiss to the other girl’s cheek. Alex flushed, even though he knew that they had no idea they’d been walked in on, and whirled on his heel to leave.</p><p>“Tag me in that,” the darker girl giggled. “I wanna show Mom. You know she’s hopeless with social media.”</p><p>The other girl snorted and Alex, against his better judgement, stopped to listen. “I will. As long as you send me the one from our date on Saturday. Dad wants it for the scrapbook.”</p><p>Alex swallowed against the pain in his chest and popped out of the band room, cheeks burning. He didn’t even <em>know </em>he could blush.</p><p>Sure, he’d had crushes. It took him three years to come to terms with the fact that he was gay. Another year before he had the courage to come out to Reggie, Luke, and Bobby. They’d all taken it well, and that had given him the courage to come out to his parents.</p><p>That one…didn’t go so well.</p><p>Alex shut his eyes and popped back to Julie’s classroom, just outside of it. He leaned against the wall and slid down it to the floor, burying his head in his hands. When they had first gone to look for their families, Alex had wanted nothing more than to find his parents. When they hadn’t found their homes where they last were, he wasn’t sure if he was more let down or more relieved.</p><p>But here, in this century? In this year? It seemed so…normal. Alex had seen signs on the streets – rainbow flags in windows, women holding hands, men kissing, people who didn’t look like men or women just…existing.</p><p>Alex knew there had to be hate. Hatred didn’t just vanish. But he hadn’t seen it, at least not yet, and those girls…they were younger than him. They were out, if how they spoke about their parents was anything to go by. And their parents were…supportive. Or at least it seemed that way.</p><p>He was jealous. He hated being jealous.</p><p>The bell rang above him and Alex lifted his head slowly, startled to find tears in his eyes. Christ, could ghosts <em>cry </em>too? Willie clearly hadn’t explained everything. The door next to him opened and students started streaming out. He sighed, getting to his feet so that he wouldn’t be walked through, and watched the stream.</p><p>Luke and Reggie weren’t with Julie when she emerged, chatting to Flynn, and he was about to go find them when she looked up and caught his eyes. Her smile slipped, eyebrows furrowing, and she grabbed Flynn’s elbow and said something quietly to her. The other girl glanced towards where Julie was looking and offered a smile and tiny wave, and Alex gave a smile even though she couldn’t see it.</p><p>Julie broke away from Flynn and pulled her phone to her ear like she was taking a call – it had become commonplace when they were in public. “Hey. What’s going on?”</p><p>Alex shrugged as they walked. If he remembered right, she had a free period next. “Nothing.”</p><p>“It’s not nothing, Alex,” she said gently, bumping into him just a little bit. Her touch was soft, barely there, but ever since their curse had been lifted, it had been normal for them to just bump into her. He didn’t mind it. “You’re crying. Are you okay?”</p><p>Alex shifted, shoving his hands into his sweatshirt pocket. He’d never felt so uncomfortable and so comforted at the same time. “I’m fine. Just overwhelmed, I guess.”</p><p>“Is there anything I can do to help?” Julie asked, and when he glanced at her, she was so sincere and earnest that it made Alex smile just a little. He could see why Luke had a thing for her.</p><p>He ignored the question for a second, clearing his throat. “Where are the others?”</p><p>Julie rolled her eyes. “Boys locker room, probably stealing some poor kid’s underwear.”</p><p>“Reggie’s idea?” Alex asked with a tiny smile.</p><p>“Shockingly, no. Luke’s,” and she wrinkled her nose.</p><p>Alex chuckled and his shoulders relaxed. “Um. Can I ask you a question?”</p><p>“Always.”</p><p>He frowned, following her into the library and to a vacant table at the back, as far from the librarians as they could get. Julie kept the phone to her ear, and Alex sat down across from her so that he could look at her. Not that he did; he stared down at his twisting hands, nails digging into his skin. “Um. Sorry, I…”</p><p>He took a breath, lifting his eyes up to the ceiling and struggling to ignore the prickling sensation. He had no reason to believe Julie would be mean. He hadn’t meant to just…not tell her. Actually, he couldn’t remember if he’d told her at all. It wasn’t something he was exactly comfortable telling people as soon as he met them. “You know I…I’m gay, right?”</p><p>Julie tilted her head, lifting an eyebrow. “Yeah. I mean, you never really told me, but I kind of gathered, from how you talked about Willie. Is that what this is about?”</p><p>“Yeah,” he breathed, relaxing at her lack of judgement. “Um…can you tell me…is it better?”</p><p>“Is it…” Julie hesitated, setting the phone down and leaning on her elbows. Her eyes focused on Alex, sympathy and understanding etched across her face. “Hey. It’s <em>so </em>much better. Okay?” Her smile was tiny, her cheeks a little flushed as she glanced around. “Um. Not to make it about me, but I’m bisexual?”</p><p>She said it like a question, but Alex heard the certainty in her voice. Something in his heart fluttered. “Yeah?”</p><p>Her smile grew, gentle. “Yeah. So is Flynn, she wouldn’t mind me saying. She’s VP of our GSA.”</p><p>“GSA?” Alex found himself asking, latching onto the one thing he could focus on. His stomach was full of butterflies. She was gay. She was <em>gay. </em>Bisexual, she was <em>queer. </em>And she’d just so casually told him, no concern in her voice for anyone who might overhear.</p><p>Julie’s smile was full of warmth. She picked her phone back up. “Yeah. Gay Student Alliance. Basically a safe space for LGBT kids and allies.”</p><p>His heart sank a little again. “Safe space?”</p><p>Julie’s smile wilted a bit. “Yeah,” she said, leaning back in her chair. “Yeah, it’s…it’s better, but it’s nowhere near perfect. So we still need that sometimes. Hey, but thank you for telling me. Was it…I mean, I don’t want to pry. But I can’t even imagine growing up in the 90s and being gay.”</p><p>Alex fiddled with his hands. “It wasn’t…great,” he admitted softly. He never really talked about this stuff with Reggie and Luke – they were as supportive as two straight guys could be (though he had his suspicions about Reggie sometimes) – but it was different, talking to someone who was also gay. Who understood, maybe not to the same extent, but to a degree. “My parents weren’t supportive. At all. Um. They kicked me out,” he said, still ashamed of it, even though he knew he shouldn’t be.</p><p>Julie didn’t say anything, just watched him silently, and he shifted in the seat. “If it wasn’t for the guys, I…” His voice hitched and he wrapped his arms tightly around himself.</p><p>“Hey.”</p><p>He looked up at Julie to find her tucking her phone away and glancing out past the bookshelves to the rest of the library. “Come here,” she said, standing up and backing into a corner.</p><p>Alex frowned and stood slowly, sidestepping the table. As he moved around it, she held her arms out. The bookshelves, the corner, it blocked her from the rest of the room. He let out a quivering sigh and speed walked into her grip, wrapping his arms around the girl tightly and pressing his face into the crook of her shoulder. Her arms were firm around him, hand rubbing a gentle circle on his back, and he swallowed at the lump that was building in his throat.</p><p>It was too late to stop the tears – they were freely falling off his cheeks and vanishing before they could hit the floor. Despite everything that had happened with Caleb, he was <em>really </em>glad they’d gone through it all. Julie gave incredible hugs.</p><p>“Oh my god, FINALLY, we’ve been looking – oh shit, what happened?” came Reggie’s voice.</p><p>Despite his embarrassment at being caught crying, Alex was slow to stop hugging. Julie caught his arms before he could turn away and met his eyes, giving him another warm smile and a gentle squeeze. He poured every ounce of gratefulness into his expression as he could before looking back at Reggie and Luke, who were both watching them with concern. He glanced again at Julie, suddenly nervous.</p><p>She shrugged, rubbing his back with a light touch as she walked back to her stuff on the table. “We were just talking,” she said, calm.</p><p>Luke looked at him with furrowed brows, and Reggie ran a hand over his jaw as he glanced between the two of them. “You sure?” Luke asked quietly.</p><p>Alex swallowed, looking at Julie. She tilted her head in support. “Um. Yeah. She was uh…she was telling me about this um…this club at their school.”</p><p>“A club,” Luke repeated, clearly not convinced.</p><p>“A…a gay club,” Alex said, softer this time. He shoved his hands in his pockets and hunched his shoulders up against his ears. “She was uh…she was telling me about some of the changes. In life. W-With gay people and things like that.”</p><p>Reggie’s smile split his face and lit up the room in a way that relieved Alex. “That’s awesome, dude! We should check it out!”</p><p>Alex blinked. “We?”</p><p>Luke rolled his eyes and slung an arm around his shoulders. “Duh. We’re not letting you go alone, dumbass. Julie, when is it?”</p><p>“Fridays after school, in the band room,” Julie said, doodling around her lyrics notebook with a small smile. She had her phone between her shoulder and her cheek now, and she looked up at them with twinkling eyes. “Mind if I join?”</p><p>“You want to come?” Reggie asked in surprise.</p><p>Julie twirled her pencil around her fingers in a motion that Alex couldn’t follow. Her eyes flickered between the other two and then settled on Alex. “I’m bi, I usually go when I can. Flynn gets annoyed when I don’t show.”</p><p>The guys were quiet for a moment, staring at her. The pencil sped up in her fingers. Reggie spoke first, no shock there. “Bi?”</p><p>Julie’s head tilted. “I like guys and girls.”</p><p>Reggie’s jaw slipped a little. “You can <em>do </em>that?” he demanded, looking like he’d just had a whole door opened in front of him.</p><p>Alex clapped a hand over his mouth, trying not to laugh. Julie didn’t even bother to try, letting her chuckle loose. “Yes, Reggie, you can.”</p><p>Reggie frowned, pondering, and Luke spoke up. “Well then in that case, we’d love to join you for the meeting,” he said, his grip around Alex’s shoulders tightening protectively. “If we’re allowed.”</p><p>“No one but me and Flynn will know you’re there,” Julie said with a shrug. “Even Flynn won’t know if you don’t want her to.”</p><p>Her gaze shifted back to Alex when she said that, eyebrow lifting, and he smiled at her in a way that he hoped read as grateful. “No, it’s okay. I’d…I’d like that. Thank you,” he said, pouring as much meaning as he could into his words.</p><p>Julie grinned. “Of course.”</p><p>The bell rang and she stood, gathering her books up and slipping her phone back in her pocket. “Okay, I need to focus for math. See you guys at home?” she asked, lifting an eyebrow.</p><p>“Duh,” Luke said. He finally let Alex go, backing up. “I’m gonna go check out the cafeteria, if anyone wants to see if school lunches have gotten better.”</p><p>He vanished, leaving Julie to wrinkle her nose. “They haven’t.”</p><p>She left with a gentle wave, leaving Alex to glance over at Reggie, who was still staring intently at the floor with a frown on his face. His hands were fidgeting at the flannel tied around his waist – his telltale anxiety motion. Alex tilted his head and set his hands gently over Reggie’s, forcing him to look up. “Good?” he asked softly.</p><p>Reggie studied him for a long second before nodding, a smile quirking on the edge of his lips, his shoulders relaxing. “Yeah,” he said, and there was sincerity in the words. “Yeah, I’m good.”</p><p>Alex smiled broadly and wrapped an arm around Reggie, not forcing him to say whatever he was thinking – it’d come out eventually. It always did with Reggie. “Good. Should we go see how disgusting the food is?”</p><p>“Oh my god <em>yes.</em>”</p><p>Reggie poofed away before him and Alex gave a small smile and shake of his head, wrapping his arms around himself and looking up as the next group of students came rushing into the library. His eyes found the locked hands of two young men, resting intertwined on top of the table as they opened up their books to study, and something wistful rose in his heart.</p><p>It was better. And that was so much better than nothing at all.</p>
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